Darklight 5: Darktide

by Forrest, Bella

  I sighed and dragged a hand through my dirty hair, which was shoved into a tight ponytail. There was little time to get clean these days.

  "And if we finish the war tomorrow?" I asked wearily.

  "It's clear that your tasks here in the Hive are important to you," he said, his eyes never leaving mine. "What if I head off on my own? My healing has been slow in this plane, but I've gathered enough strength to travel. I can hide myself well enough. In fact, finding a way home even with your help will prove difficult. I've realized that I need to find an optimal place where the barriers are weak and make preparations to open the way."

  I frowned. "You promised you’d help us—"

  "I never said I was trying to run out on our deal," he cut in quickly. "If I break our pact then it would cause me great pain and damage, the same consequences that would befall you and Dorian if you were to fail to hold up your part of the bargain. Our deal will enable me to find you again wherever you go in either of these planes. My leaving would simply save us time. I'll do the work I need to do, while you finish your tasks. Two birds, one stone, as I have heard you humans say."

  I considered it, mulling over his words and trying to poke holes in what he’d said. It sounded reasonable, but after what happened with the hunters, I was leery of making decisions alone. And this one wouldn’t just affect me.

  "I'd like to talk to Dorian first. A lot will depend on our timeline for the assault on the training camp," I said.

  Closing the gate might come sooner than we thought, if Gate Maker’s idea paid off.

  Chapter Twenty

  We had to use a lot of negotiation and an unfortunate amount of intimidation to get the population of the Hive on the same page. The vulnerable vampires, the elderly and those unable to fight, got on board fast, as evacuation meant saving their lives after all. Many of those who were in unwavering opposition of our plan to move to the Mortal Plane spat curses at us as they left the Hive to find a new haven somewhere in the Immortal Plane. Meanwhile, the Coalition hammered out everything to get the evacuation in order. It was easier said than done when it came to figuring out the logistics of transporting the entire population of the Hive and their artifacts. Meanwhile, the makers worked tirelessly to finalize the first batch of weapons.

  Even after all that, there was still plenty to do. I couldn't make heads or tails of Echen's organization system for his personal office. Sike and I dashed across the room every few minutes to follow the scholar's train of thought.

  “That box of journals from Vanim,” Echen muttered, scratching his head as he babbled instructions. “I don’t suppose we’ll need my musk collection?”

  “Definitely not,” Sike said.

  We had to be extra careful with some objects, wrapping them in special waterproof fabric that the Hive used to preserve documents and artifacts. A messenger came by to ensure that we were using this specific material. The elders were only communicating with us through intermediaries. I inwardly rolled my eyes and assured the scout that things were just fine. Another hour of work passed quickly. I paused to wind up my watch again and saw the hour.

  "I'll be back," I told Sike. “I’m due for a meeting to finalize the route that Harlowe has suggested.” He waved a hand, not looking up from a dusty pile of notebooks.

  As I made my way through the Hive, I turned down the wrong passageway and found myself in the nursery area. My heart squeezed painfully as I remembered that Rhome and the kids were still here. Carwin and Detra must be so nervous for the evacuation. I want to see the kids.

  Kane walked out of the chamber as I approached the nursery. I stiffened as he walked toward me. I hadn't spoken to him since the kissing incident with Roxy. I braced myself for anything, a glare, a foul comment, a curled lip. Instead, he simply walked past as if he hadn't even noticed me.

  I turned automatically, an apology bubbling on my lips. “Kane, I’m sorry.”

  Kane merely lifted his hand, as if to say that he’d heard, and continued on his way.

  What was that supposed to mean? I pushed down a sudden rush of anger and frustration, taking a deep breath and letting it go. Kane probably hadn’t meant anything by it, or he just needed more time. I couldn’t waste energy getting distracted by the blood’s effects, not with everything that we needed to accomplish.

  Carwin's soft voice carried into the hall as I approached the doorway. I might not have another chance to check on the kids for some time… or at all, since they would be among some of the first to evacuate. This was worth being a little late to my meeting.

  Rhome sat in the center of the room, propped up against a makeshift bed of fabric stuffed with a type of soft straw. It was a rare luxury in the Hive, but the vampires wanted the children to be comfortable. Rhome had dark circles beneath his eyes, but his injuries looked better in the soft light of the lichen. It was wonderful to see him without that awful collar wreaking havoc on his system. He sat cradling Carwin in his arms. His son muttered sleepily, his half-lidded eyes fluttering occasionally.

  "Rhome," I called softly, worried he hadn't heard me at the door, "can I come in?" It felt awkward to ask, but the kids were still shaken by their experiences. I’d noticed new scratches on Roxy, faint pink lines that ran down her arms.

  Rhome glanced down and smiled softly at Carwin, who stirred. I saw Detra now, a fluffy head of hair lying at her father's feet. She sat up with a doll clutched tightly in her arms. It was something Juneau had made her from scraps of fabric that Roxy found. The sight of the toy, new and beautiful thanks to Juneau, against Detra’s tattered clothes made me want to cry.

  "Do you guys mind if Lyra stops by?" Rhome paused for a moment, waiting for their recognition. "Uncle Dorian's friend, remember?"

  Carwin gave a tired nod, and Detra sat up straighter. She wiggled her doll’s head so that it nodded too.

  "I remember," she whispered. "She can come in." She kept her eyes downcast, running her fingers through her doll’s hair.

  "Hi, guys." I kept my voice low and calm, but cheerful. "You know me, right? We like playing together.”

  Carwin blinked and rubbed his eyes. He lifted his arms, inviting me to pick him up. I studied Rhome, and he gave a nod of approval. His body relaxed when I took Carwin into my arms. Poor Rhome likely hadn't had a break since they came to the Hive. I held Carwin close, rocking him gently.

  “I’ve been picking things up and putting them down all day long,” I told him. “But you’re the best one so far. What did you do today?”

  “Played with my sister,” he mumbled.

  “Did you have fun?”

  He buried his face in the crook of my neck, a clear signal that he was done talking. I rested my cheek against his fluffy baby hair, feeling completely at peace for the first time in days. Even the vampire blood couldn’t ruin something like this.

  "How is everything?" I asked Rhome. It seemed the kids weren’t up for talking.

  He sighed and ruffled Detra's hair. "They're doing better. Sleeping through the night again. I’ll take that as a victory.”

  "Do they know what’s going on?" I asked quietly. I was almost sure that I knew the answer.

  Rhome exhaled slowly. "They can tell something is happening." He darted a look toward Detra, who was in her own little world with the doll. Carwin had closed his eyes. "I'm worried that the… activity might upset them further. The risks are high." He avoided using the word “evacuation.”

  "You're right," I said. He was being realistic, but I wanted to reassure him in some way. He deserved some cheering up. "We know the risk, but they'll be much happier in Scotland."

  Rhome ran his hand along the back of his neck. "Will they? I wonder… I don't know what will happen when Kreya and I are reunited. If she's still recovering, I won't abandon her. I've tortured myself over everything since that moment in the prison, but… I don't know if I still hold the same feelings that I once had for her." He paused for a heartbreaking moment. The melancholy nearly swallowed me whole. "Will she even remember
me?"

  I hesitated. Rhome needed sensitivity and a friend right now, but comforting lies would do nothing for him. "I don’t know. But no matter how things work out between the two of you, I’m sure you’ll find happiness again in the end. The kids love you. They’ll be safer after we move them."

  Carwin grunted as he jerked in his sleep. Rhome lifted his arms to take his son back, and I carefully passed the small boy back to his father.

  Rhome gave me a sad smile. "Good luck out there."

  I told him I would try my best, but my thoughts were haunted by the horrors his family had faced as I returned to my duties. It was one thing to see adults traumatized, but children couldn't understand this beyond the fact that there were bad people who wanted to hurt them. I wanted to make the rulers pay.

  Every single refugee had a similar story. Family trauma repeated over and over in a hopeless loop as long as the Immortal Council stayed in power. It made the work to fight against the rulers even harder. I closed my eyes against a brief flash of anger, good anger, the kind I knew was justified and necessary to keep me going in this fight. If we pulled this mission off, we would get back to our main task and ensure that the rulers never hurt anyone ever again. Right there in the hallway, I made a promise to myself that we would stop this cycle.

  I missed Dorian. I wanted to wrap my arms around him and talk this through, but there was still tension between us. It was like an invisible wall had materialized, and I couldn't break through. We’d been so busy that I hadn’t even seen him since the morning meeting, and I still needed to talk to him about the Gate Maker's proposal. I let out a shaky sigh, overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude of our goals. Packing up the entire Hive should have taken a week or more, and we were trying to do it in less than two days. Thoughts of Carwin and Detra helped me fight the fatigue. I would work as hard as possible to protect them, and everyone else, too.

  When the day turned to night, a familiar need pulsed through me, and I knew I needed another dose of Dorian’s blood. The rising pressure to protect everyone made it feel like the Hive walls were closing in.

  I made my way to the storage room and found our materials in their usual place in the corner. We’d have to move them soon, as the storerooms were beginning to be emptied out, but for tonight they were okay.

  “How are you feeling?”

  I jumped at the sound of Dorian’s voice. Was he spying on me? I whipped around to see him leaning against a stack of crates, his form in shadow.

  “I’d feel better if you hadn’t just scared me to death,” I replied, with a shaky laugh.

  He grunted, reaching for a needle and drawing a syringe full of blood, which he handed to me. In my hand it felt warm from the shimmering contents. I studied the shadows dancing in the blood, mesmerized. Incredible how the power this liquid gave me could be so volatile.

  As I drew blood to give to him, something like reluctance flashed across his face. I passed him the syringe of my blood, and he paused for a long moment before injecting it. As he withdrew the needle with a slight wince, I remembered Gate Maker’s proposal.

  “Gate Maker wants to leave,” I said. “He says there’s something he needs to do while we mount our attack.”

  Dorian stilled. “Did he tell you what?”

  “He’s looking for a place between the barriers of this plane and his home.” It was vague, but Gate Maker hadn’t exactly supplied much information. “He’s losing patience with us.”

  Dorian let out a sharp sigh. “Patience? He wouldn’t even be free if it weren’t for you.” He puzzled over the news. “I don’t think we should separate. The evacuation won’t take long, just another day or two.”

  I frowned. Gate Maker had sounded urgent when he explained his motivations to me. Dorian caught my hesitation and raised a questioning eyebrow.

  “He sounded like he needed to do it now,” I said. “He can’t break the pact without hurting himself, so we know he’ll come back at some point. He needs us just as much as we need him.”

  Dorian let out a slow exhale. “You’re too soft on him. He’s been waiting nine hundred years. Another few days won’t kill him. The evacuation has to take priority; the hunters could find us at any moment.” He straightened and took a step away from the crates toward the door. Not toward me. It stung even as I willed it not to. “I still need to do some things. Good luck tonight.”

  He left me clutching the blood-filled syringe.

  I contemplated the blood, noting how thick it was with shadow. Since Dorian had been feeding regularly, his blood was darker and stronger than before. Usually he stayed and gauged how much of the syringe was safe for me to take, drinking the remnants of the shot. But this time Dorian wasn’t around to watch me. One thing I knew for certain: we had a hard few days ahead of us, and there would be bloodshed before it was over. That meant I needed strength. I slid the needle into my skin and depressed the plunger until the syringe was empty.

  I planned to do whatever it took to win this war.

  * * *

  "Careful with the weight on the redbills on the outskirts of the formation," Kono called. "We'll need them to carry a light load in case they need to break off for defensive maneuvers."

  I stood with Arlonne and Kono on the top level of the Hive. Volunteers helped load up the redbills with crates of relics, records, and precious volumes of vampire knowledge. The redbills squawked in protest of the added weight but complied after being bribed with treats. Dorian was somewhere in the midst of the chaos, but I didn’t see him. I’d been able to steal a few hours of sleep, trading off with Roxy. We’d come to a strange peace, luckily. She didn't bring up the kiss again, and I didn’t see Kane, either.

  Gate Maker sat curled in my pocket in the form of a beetle. I’d told him that I didn't want to lose him in the evacuation, reframing Dorian’s sharp comment as a request that Gate Maker gave us until the evacuation was over so the three of us could discuss his plan to go off on his own in more detail. Although the Hive cave was usually dim, the wildlings had cultivated the glowing lichen to grow on the ceilings and the walls around us. It made the task of getting everything organized much easier. As my eyes swept over the organized chaos, a rush of momentary victory passed through me. We did it. Somehow, we’d managed to arrange everything for the evacuation. Our mission was back on track, although I hated the conflict that we’d had to go through to get here.

  Gate Maker crept out of my pocket, opening his shiny wings and buzzing up to my shoulder, the little beetle settling beside my ear. What did he want?

  His low whisper came soft in my ear, only loud enough for me to hear.

  "Our enemies are here. Leave the vampires and run."

  An electric shock zipped up my spine, and I whipped around to search for hunters. Arlonne jumped at my movement, following my gaze. At the far end of the cave, cutting through the gloom, fiery red lights flashed. My heart slammed against my chest. They were lasers from the hunters, lighting the cavernous ceiling with terrible implication. Three Hive scouts were supposed to warn us of intruders… but I suspected that we would never hear from them again.

  "They're here," I cried. Shouts erupted as the gem lasers streaked up to the ceiling and slammed into the rock. Pebbles crumbled above us, raining down on our operation.

  Kono scrambled to the highest peak to survey the far end of the cave. "Ten skimmers approaching. One hunter and one pilot each."

  An angry buzz erupted in the cave. The swarm of jaspeths darted from their new hive, provoked by the loud and bright presence of weapons. I felt for my utility belt, cursing myself for leaving my rifle beside my bedroll. I only had my pistol with me.

  Frenzied wings beat faster and faster. The jaspeths swarmed before the Hive, trying to protect their home. Ten white skimmers approached like ominous dots in the distance. Shots fired from the crafts, but their rays struck the jaspeths first.

  The jaspeths protected us for now, but they wouldn't last long against the hunters.

  The evacuation had
come too late. The Hive was under attack.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  The hunters’ line broke against the jaspeths, each skimmer falling into individual battles with angry formations of enormous wasps. The redbills gave violent cries, aggravated by the sounds of gem blasts. Pebbles fell from the ceiling like rain. Made anonymous by the clouds of dust, vampires scattered every which way, pushing and shouting.

  "Artifacts back in the Hive," Kono yelled over the chaos. "Non-warriors, take the cargo back and stay in the Hive." The volunteers rushed to unpack the redbills, who beat their wings as more shots rang out. I looked at Arlonne. Her usual stoic calm remained intact as she evaluated the situation, steadying me like an anchor amid the chaos.

  "We're not ready," someone shouted desperately from the crowd. Another swore.

  Arlonne faced the crowd of volunteers, who threatened to dissolve into panic. "Scouts and warriors, get on the redbills that haven’t been loaded. Head off the hunters before they finish the jaspeths." Attack was a good idea, but we needed more than that. If the non-fighters rushed the artifacts back inside, the Hive would need protection in case the skimmers broke through our offense.

  "I need people on the defensive," I called to Kono. We had to rally the crowd. Some of our warriors were inside, helping with preparations. Had they heard the chaos yet?

  Kono nodded sharply. "I'll send a few of our best scouts to the top of the Hive to shoot any who make it past you." Excellent. Snipers on top of the Hive wouldn’t require any redbills, which would all be needed to take the brunt of the skimmers’ attack.

  Arlonne grunted, low and frustrated. She nudged me. "Gather the humans. Grab weapons, anything that can draw blood. I'll do the same with the Coalition."

  "Got it. I'll meet you back here." I took off. Gate Maker nearly flew off my shoulder from the force. He buzzed next to my ear.